Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts | 2021 Assessment Report
AIR CHAPTER
Wisconsin’s climate is warmer, wetter and we are experiencing more extreme events Photo credit: Kevin Sink
Wisconsin’s climate continues to change in ways that are consistent with the projections from the 2011 WICCI Assessment Report. Since the 2011 report was released, all regions of Wisconsin have reported their wettest decade in recorded history. Not only are we getting more precipitation, we are also experiencing more VERY extreme storm events. Wisconsin is also getting warmer, especially in the winter. “We have known that we are committed to climate change since the 1800s. The question is how far are we willing to go? And how fast are we willing to allow the climate to change? Our actions now will make a huge difference for avoiding the worst outcomes.” –Dan Vimont, Professor of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences and Director of the Nelson Institute Center for Climatic Research, UW-Madison Read the full interview
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WICCI Report 2021
The impacts of extreme events – high heat days, flooding, reduced water quality – are disproportionately impacting vulnerable groups like communities of color, children and pregnant women, the elderly, immigrant groups, lower income households, and individuals with disabilities or chronic health conditions. As the climate continues to warm and impacts worsen, groups that cannot afford to move or adapt will be most at risk.
The past decade Climate trends over the last decade continue to align with expected climatic changes. The decade from 2010-2019 was the wettest in Wisconsin since records began around 1900. Statewide annual average precipitation during this decade rose to 37.0 inches, a 17 percent increase over the previous long-term average. Warming trends in Wisconsin have also continued, with average temperatures in Wisconsin increasing by 3 degrees Fahrenheit since the 1950s (Figure 1).
